CANALS - SETHUSAMUDRAM

CANALS“A Boon or Bane for the countries” : 

CANALS“A Boon or Bane for the countries” Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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SUEZ CANAL - Egypt One of the world’s most important waterways and oil transit chokepoints from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. Serves as a two-way water transport route between Europe and Asia. 190 Km long and 300 meters wide. Saves circumnavigation through Cape Agulhas (southernmost tip of Africa) which is total 19,000 km. Source: http://lexicorient.com/e.o/suez_can.htm Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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PANAMA CANAL – Republic of Panama One of the world’s most famous waterways which joins the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Replaced the long and treacherous route via Cape Horn at the southernmost tip of South America. A ship sailing from New York to San Francisco via the canal travels 9,500km (6,000 miles), well under half the 22,500 km (14,000 miles) route around Cape Horn. Source: http://www.pancanal.com/ Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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A PROJECT DIFFERENT THAN THE REST PALK STRAIT GULF OF MANNAR INDIAN OCEAN BAY OF BENGAL Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project proposes linking the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka by creating a shipping channel through the shallow sea sometimes called Setu Samudram, and through the island chain of Adam’s Bridge, also known as ram sethu. This channel would provide continuous navigable sea route around the Indian Peninsula. The project involves digging a 44.9 nautical mile (83 km) long deepwater channel linking the shallow water of the Palk Strait with the Gulf of Mannar. Conceived as early as 1860 by Alfred Dundas Taylor, it recently received approval of the Indian Government. Many organizations support implementation of this project using one of the 5 alternative alignments considered earlier without damaging Ram Setu (a structure considered sacred by Hindus). (photograph in the next slide). Source: http://www.pancanal.com/ Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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SETHUSAMUDRAM SHIPPING CANAL ALIGNMENTS Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF THE SETHUSAMUDRAM CANAL : 

ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF THE SETHUSAMUDRAM CANAL Quantifiable Benefits Savings in voyage time. Savings in fuel cost. Top Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT) officials assert that the project will be a profit-earner and that it will have a cumulative surplus of Rs.3,138 crores, 25 years after it is opened to traffic. About 2,000 ships a year (six to nine a day) will use the canal and they will totally save Rs.107 crores in fuel. The time saved will vary between 25 hours and 40 hours, depending on where they come from. The time saved will be 25 hours if the ships ply at 12 knots an hour and the average saving in distance will be 300 nautical miles. "The revenue that the canal will earn in 2008 will be Rs.87.42 crores," a TPT official says. (If the work of excavating the canal begins in 2005, it may be opened to traffic in 2008). "It is definitely a viable project. Mother-ships will use the canal," he says. Any vessel with a draught of 10.7 metres can use the canal. Ships using the Tuticorin harbour have a draught of 10.7 metres. "Any vessel with a draught of 10.7 metres, a beam (breadth) of 33 metres, and up to 237 metres long can use the canal. In this, there is no need to bring in any definitions such as mother-vessels or feeder-vessels," he says. The canal project will make a profit although the canal will have to undergo periodical dredging. "In any activity, there will be operating costs and there will be a net surplus. We will have a net surplus," the official said. - Frontline, Volume 22 – Issue 01, Jan. 01 – 14, 2005. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

Economic Benefits Continues……. : 

Economic Benefits Continues……. Non Quantifiable Benefits Increase in the level of economic activity in the region resulting in employment opportunities and revenue generation for the government. Activities like ship repair facility, bunkering facility etc. will increase, increasing employment as well. Being a development project, it will lead to manifold increase in the level of economic activity as a whole resulting in an overall increase in the level of economic activity due to multiplier effect. Increased possibility of transportation and export – import in various ports of peninsular India due to coastal vessels plying on the coastal route. The channel will be of strategic importance to the national defense agencies since the naval vessels can ply in territorial waters. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

OTHER BENEFITS……. : 

OTHER BENEFITS……. The strategic advantages to India derive from obtaining a navigable sea route close to the coast. Reduction in travel distance of more than 350 nautical miles (650 km) (for larger ships). The project is expected to provide a boost to the economic and industrial development of coastal Tamil Nadu. (easy transportation, export and import) Tuticorin harbour will transform into a nodal port and further development of 13 minor ports, including Ennore, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Thondi, Valinokam, Kolachel and Kanyakumari. Increased maritime security for Tamil Nadu due to development of the canal and ports. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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Religious Political parties & some hindu organizations oppose dredging through the ram setu (adams bridge) on religious ground and suggest alternate alignment for the channel that avoids damage to Adam’s bridge But state and central government have opposed such changes as the current proposal was well scruitinised for economic viability and environmental sustainability and that there were no other environmentally feasible alternatives. Social Displacement of fishermen – Most of the land is barren and covered by sand and scant vegetation. Government land on which there is no inhabitation at present has only been identified for land based facilities. Livelihood and welfare of fishermen will be affected - Neither fish production nor fishing activities will be affected due to the channel, rather it will upgrade their socio-economic status. Damage to fishing nets due to movement of ships – The traffic management and movement of fishing boats and fishing nets will be watched & controlled by Tuticorin Port Trust. If any damage occurs, necessary compensation will be given to fishermen through a committee. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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Transfer of fish will occur due to ship movement - The channel will facilitate navigation of fish as well as movement of fishes and other biota from the Bay of Bengal to the Indian Ocean and vice-versa. This way, the entry of oceanic and alien species into the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar, as also the dispersal of endemic species outside the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar could occur. Many scientists and fishermen have expressed the view that entry of such alien species into Palk Bay through the dredged channel could enrich the fish population. Spillage of oil and plastic materials into the sea will affect the fish breeding – The proposed alignment in the Gulf of Mannar is more than 20 km away from the Islands constituting the National Marine Park in the Gulf of Mannar. Therefore, the marine biological resources will not be affected to any significant level. Rare fish species sea cow, sea turtle and dolphins will be affected – Strict control has been planned and posting of environmental watchers or well trained pilots aboard the transiting vessels to endeavor avoidance of injury to endangered species. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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Sedimentation will occur in the canal during monsoon leading to heavy loss to the Government – The quality of maintenance dredging required in this channel even in the worst case scenario will be far less than the quantity of annual maintenance dredging in ports such as Cochin, Kolkatta and a few others. During cyclone the channel will be unusable because of deposition of heavy silt – In terms of cyclones and landfall, Andhra & Orissa coasts are the most vulnerable, West Bengal coast is highly vulnerable, while Tamil Nadu coast is vulnerable. As per records, 61 cyclones have hit Tamil Nadu during the period 1891-1995 and only six had directly crossed the Palk Bay. This conveys that Palk Bay is less prone to incidence of cyclones than even the rest of Tamil Nadu. Also, the incidence of cyclones in the Gulf of Mannar because of its geomorphology is even less than in Palk Bay. Dredged material will alter the level of dissolved oxygen and leads to environmental degradation – Dredged material would be disposed well below the sea surface so that plume of suspended solids will remains submerged and will not cause alteration in surface turbidity and primary productivity. There would not be any significant change in water quality including turbidity due to the proposed deployment of trailor suction hopper dredgers for capital and maintenance dredging. Since modern dredging technology will be employed for dredging, turbidity levels will be within the prescribed levels, and therefore, any decrease in dissolved oxygen will be transient and insignificant. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

Sethusamudram Project: A reality check Unanswered Controversial Issues : 

Sethusamudram Project: A reality check Unanswered Controversial Issues George Gomez, Coordinator, Tamil Nadu Manual Workers' Union, Tuticorin, who has several decades of experience in the shipping industry, says the project cost will work out to Rs.3,000 crores. He says the project "will be a sick unit" as the money invested can never be recovered. "I don't think any container ship will use the canal," he says. Major container operators, deploying mother-vessels, will not use it. The difference in time between ships using the canal and those going round Sri Lanka will only be a few hours. Ships would not be able to cruise fast on the canal because they will have to be piloted, he argues. Not only mother-vessels but 80 per cent of the vessels going round Sri Lanka will not use the canal, Gomez says. Moreover, the canal would have to be dredged continuously. - Frontline, Volume 22 – Issue 01, Jan. 01 – 14, 2005. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

Controversial Issues Continues……. : 

Controversial Issues Continues……. The channel is being dredged so that the ships with up to 10 metres draught can transit through it. But almost all the tankers and bulk carriers from Persian Gulf or the Red Sea and bound for East or South East Asia are much bigger in size, and will not be able to use the channel due to constraints of draught. Even for those ships that can transit through the canal, except for traffic from Tuticorin to Chennai, the time gained by most of the merchant ships on account of shorter distance will be more than neutralised due to delays that are inherent in transiting through a narrow channel, where pilotage in all probability will be compulsory. The ships will have to anchor and wait for a pilot (a local expert who navigates the ship through confined waters). Time will be wasted in waiting for pilot, embarking him, disembarking him and also due to speed restrictions mandated in a narrow and shallow channel. If the traffic increases, then the ships will have to queue up as big ships will find it difficult to cross each other in a narrow channel like this. Any fuel saved will be neutralised by Pilotage charges and other charges likely to be levied on ships transiting through this artificially made canal. It is therefore unlikely that any significant shipping is likely to be diverted through this canal, even after it is ready. This poses serious doubts about the financial viability of the project. - Sify News, Thursday, 04 October , 2007, 23:55 Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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Controversial Issues Continues……. Security Issues - All big ships during their transit from Adam's Bridge to Point Calimere will be extremely vulnerable to attacks by LTTE, as the ships on account of surrounding shallow waters will be constrained to move at a slow speed and follow a fixed path, which will pass very close to the waters dominated by the LTTE. This will provide LTTE a strong leverage against India and the flow of traffic through the canal will depend on India's relations with this terrorist outfit. Bilateral Relation Issues - India must aim to bring the countries of South Asia closer and strive for a South Asian Economic Union. But the Sethusamudram Project creates an unnecessary tension between India and Sri Lanka, which is uncomfortable with the project as it perceives it to be against Sri Lankan interests. Most of the vessels will divert away from the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Sri Lanka and it will loose on major chunk of its revenue earned form foreign vessels, export-import opportunities and tourists as well. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

Epilogue……. : 

Epilogue……. Every developmental program has its own positive and negative aspects. Though there are many controversial points raised by various groups which are associated with the Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project, but the potential benefits cannot be ignored as mentioned by the researchers and the Sethusamudram Corporation Limited. Two of the world famous Canal Projects i.e. Panama & Suez Canals were also linked with various socio-economic problems and environmental degradation. But in the end these problems have been resolved and environmental degradation have been brought down to the permissible levels. Both the countries i.e. Republic of Panama and Egypt’s economy have been benefited through the revenue, export-import profits and tourism earned from the foreign vessels. Once Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project will be operational after its construction, it will definitely going to boost the Indian economy through employment generation, coastal area development, port development, tourism, transportation, export-import & revenue from the transiting vessels. Environmental degradation, negative impact on the biodiversity is inevitable but it can easily be brought down under the international permissible level. Hence, instead of criticizing even before its construction and operation, we should give Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project a chance to serve our nation India. Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

References : 

References http://sethusamudram.gov.in/English_Index.asp www.wikipedia.com www.thehindu.com Sethusamudram Project: A reality check, http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14537955 Raman, Papri Sri, “Cyclones, Tsunami and the Sethusamudram project”, (www.Boloji.com) SUBRAMANIAN, T.S, “Of gains and losses”, The Frontline, Volume 22 - Issue 01, Jan. 01 - 14, 2005. Image source http://images.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey

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Merci Danke gut Thank you Dhanyavad Prepared by: Arvind Tirkey